Nick ChampionFNAEA FNAVA

Auctioneer, Valuer, Land & Estate Agent

HOME INFORMATION PACKS (HIPs)

What is a HIP?
Every property being put on the market now has to carry with it a Home Information Pack (HIP). This pack compiles documents which are required when homes are bought and sold - some of these documents are mandatory requirements of the HIP and some are optional additional information.

What is included in a HIP?
The mandatory documents are -

An index to the Home Information Pack, which is the list of contents of the HIP.
A Sale statement, which is the summary of the terms of sale of the property.
Evidence of title providing ownership of the property.
Property Information Questionnaire (PIQ).
Standard searches, the local authority enquiries and a drainage and water search.
The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) which is the assessment of your property's energy efficiency rating carried out by a qualified Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA).
Where appropriate, any commonhold information.
In cases of leasehold property, a copy of the lease.

Your HIP
As a Guild member we have access to The Guild's own specialist HIP department who are able to:

Organise and collate the pack on your behalf.
Instruct the Domestic Energy Assessor to perform the assessment of your property's energy efficiency at your convenience.
Offer you printed or electronic online options for the provision of your HIP
Inform you of the cost of the HIP for your property and offer you payment options - normally by credit/debit card or by a 9-months deferred payment option.

A simple and very easy process that leaves you in full ownership of your Home Information Pack and ensures you are fully compliant with the law.

Telphone Nick Champion on 01584 810555 or contact us for further information on how you can organise your HIP.

ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATES (EPCs)

What is an EPC?
Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) have been introduced to help improve the energy efficiency of buildings.

If you are selling or letting a home you now need a certificate by law. From October 2008 EPCs will be required whenever a building is built, sold or rented out.

Accredited energy assessors produce EPCs alongside an associated report which suggests improvements to make a building more energy efficient.

The Operational Rating is a numerical indicator of the actual annual carbon dioxide emissions from the building. This rating is shown on a scale from A to G, where A is the lowest (best) and G is the highest (worst).

The Advisory Report will contain recommendations for improving the energy performance of the building. An EPC is valid for 12 months and needs to be updated annually. The accompanying Advisory Report is valid for 7 years.

An EPC must contain, by law, the following information:-

the operational rating and the asset rating (if available) as determined by the government approved method
show the operational ratings for the building expressed in any certificates displayed by the occupier during the last two years before the nominated date
include a reference value such as a current legal standard or benchmark

The EPC will also show the unique certificate reference number, the address of the building, the total useful floor area of the building, the name of the energy assessor, their employer (or trading name if self employed), the name of their accreditation scheme and the date when the EPC was issued.

The EPC must be accompanied by an Advisory Report. EPCs are valid for 3 years on sale properties and 10 years for lettings.

Telephone Nick Champion on 01584 810555 or contact us to arrange for an EPC assessment to be carried out on your home.